Spinning Gallery!

For whatever reason, when I first started blogging about my fibery pursuits I wasn’t going to connect the blog to the rest my my web site. Well, I decided that is foolish and I’m working on putting together galleries for my fibery stuff.

Because I have only been spinning for over a month (and not solidly since I didn’t purchase my own wheel until the 18th of June) I started with that gallery as it was a task that could be completed in an evening. I don’t have it linked to on all the other gallery pages just yet as that is quite the uploading task. But, I thought I could share the link with you anyway for anyone who is curious to see all my hand spun yarns in one location.

http://designedlykristi.com/gallery/spinning/index.html

Pity Party is Over!

Okay, so not really, but I’m going to try to pretend that I do not have terrible, awful cabin fever and an itch to get the heck out of dodge. But, alas, I have 18 days, well really 19 days until I leave for my two weeks in Minnesota where it will also be hot but also humid, but I will have my own window AC unit and a bed to myself so I’ll get the best 2 weeks of sleep since last June when I was last there…

It’s time for pictures, isn’t it?

On the right is my third hank, which was previously picture on the bobbin earlier in the week. I finally took it off and set the twist. It still is slightly over twisted, but not as much as the previous two. This hank is 45 yds and 1.3 oz of fiber which once again is a wool blend with angelina from the Bountiful grab bag of multiple colors.

On the left is the medium grade wool blend. It is a 3 oz hank and 82 yds of 2-ply. It’s probably a heavy worsted on average. The yardage isn’t enough for a decent branching out so I’m open to project suggestions for it if anyone has some ideas…

This is my homemade $3 PVC Niddy Noddy in it’s 1.5 yd configuration. There are directions for making them in several spots on the net - try here or here.

Some notes:

• Some directions did not take into account the extra length caused by the T-connectors and wrapping around the 1/2 inch arms when saying what length center piece to cut.
• For a 1 m niddy noddy , I needed a 6 inch center piece.
• For a 1.5 m niddy noddy, I needed a 10.5 inch center piece.
• For a 2 m niddy noddy, I needed a 15 inch center piece.
• To some it up with an equation (sorry, being a meteorologist for so long has me liking concreate numerical formulas for things) - C/4 - 3 inches = L, where C is the final circumference of the hank you want to make and L is the length of the center portion of the niddy noddy. This equation is for 1/2 inch PVC pipe only and may vary slightly depending upon how tightly you seat the Ts onto the center sections.
• One of the best ways to remove the ugly printing on the pipe so you have a nice looking niddy noddy is to sand it off. They make a PVC pipe clearner, but it is expensive and smelly and quite likely somewhat caustic. Sand first with a medium fine sand paper and finish with some fine steel wool for a nice satin smooth finish.
• If you have a commercial clothing steamer and plan to use it on your yarn to set the twist, pre drill a 3/16 inch hole in the top of one of the T connectors and screw in a 7/8 inch cup hook into the top. Then you can hang the niddy noddy from your steamer’s mast and steam the yarn without burning yourself. Or, if you wet set wool on it you can hang it from a shower curtain hook in the bathroom etc.
• The caps make the niddy noddy look really nice, but are just thick enough to get in the way of removing the yarn. If you have the means to make a nice smooth and very straight cut, do so and look for plugs that go inside of the pipe instead of the caps that go on the oustide. In my case, we just cut with a hack saw and didn’t get the most straight of cups so the caps are the best option and I am able to easily remove one to make removing the yarn easier.

So, there you have it! Tomorrow I’ll announce the new contest…

*sigh*

I’m just feeling *really* off this week. Yuck!

I think part of it is the heat and the fact that I don’t have the pleasure of an air conditioned work place, so I’ve been in 76+ degree temperatures (usually we’re pushing or exceeding 80 degrees in the house by 3pm) with a few hours of respite every couple of days when I give in and buy an iced coffee at Catalyst. It has me cranky and ornery and lazy and tired and in pain and bitchy.

Okay, so I’ve tried my darndest to not fall prey to the laziness factor. I’ve been riding my bike to the grocery store in the mornings to get some fresh fruit before it heats up too bad and I’ve gone to all my water aerobics classes. But when it comes to doing work that should be done that requires my computer I get lazy and don’t follow through. Fortunately most of it doesn’t *have* to be done. But, all the same I feel like a big ole lump on a log.

For me, I think summer is almost more depressing than winter because we close all the blinds and draw all the curtains and leave them that way until sunset so the house is dark and depressing.

I really, really just need to get out of the house. I thought I’d take in a matinee yesterday to have a couple hours of AC, but the movie I wanted to see (and knew DH didn’t really have an interest in) didn’t have any matinee show times. The cheap theater selections are kind of sucky as well at the moment or I already saw it and don’t care to see it again. Plus, movies by yourself aren’t a lot of fun either.

Anyway, sorry for all the bitching and not having much of a fiber-related post. But, this heat and such is making it hard for me to take pleasure in any of my fibery pursuits right now. And, I’m totally not looking forward to the 4th of July as the plans are not such that I can really participate, so I’ll likely be spending the day home alone like any normal Monday except that there won’t be any SnB to go to in the evening and DH won’t get home until midnight or later *sigh*

Gah! Yuck! I suck!

Fiber Friends are First Rate!

So, I had been contemplating spinning long before I actually met Snow. However, Snow made it her personal duty to increase the ranks of spinners in our little corner of the world - especially spinners who enjoy getting together and talking obsessively about their projects on a regular basis

Once she got Amanda and I to both cave and make the BIG purchase she didn’t view her job as over like many would. Instead, she dived into her personal fiber stash and put together some fiber samplers for us so that we can learn a bit about choosing wool for spinning for particular projects.

A group of SnB regulars gathered for Sushi on Friday night and she brough with her this…

Let’s take a closer look…

1 - A blend with angelina
2 - Targhee that is somewhat neppy
3 - Shetland
4 - Superwash Merino
5 - Confetti from Copper Moose
6 & 7 - Coopworth

Amanda is having very good success with the Targhee and a drop spindle. I know I definitely want to try it on my wheel, but I think I might pull out the drop spindle and give some of it a go on there as well…

On a side note, it’s not really a knit a long, but I put it there anyway and you’ve maybe noticed over there in the upper right already. I heard about the first swap at Wax and Feathers and Piddeloop
and was wishing I had gotten in on the exchange as both DH and I love being exposed to new music. So, when Piddleloop announced that she was hosting the 2nd round I signed up! Now, to choose the tracks I want to include on my CD and design the cover…

Lastely, since I had only one entrant in the last contest and the guess wasn’t right, I’ll be announcing a new contest late this week, so stay tuned and exercise your thinking caps, especially if they are of the pithy variety…

Yet More Goodies!

Because I ended up taking an unexpected break from blogland on Friday I still have a few more goodies to share that I got in Estes at the Wool Festival…

This was the last of my fiber purchases. It’s alpaca roving, 2 oz ea, from Red Barn in Loveland. When I feel my spinning is worthy it will be spun and I think the two colors plied together to make a scarf for my grandfather. I know it will knock my grandma’s socks off that I not only knit the scarf, but spun the yarn as well Plus, it is soooo soft and so nice and warm, it’ll be perfect for grandpa and the Minnesota winters! But, my spinning isn’t quite up to par to pull it out just yet.

Now, I had given my partners in budget busting crime to not let me leave without getting a Niddy Noddy. I almost did, but Amanda reminded me and then I remembered the gorgeous one Margene had pointed out to me at the Magpie Woodworks booth (sorry, they have no web site), so we both headed over there. Amanda got the same set, but also a felting needle holder and I believe is going to be calling them to order a large Niddy Noddy as well. The ones we took home with us are only 1-yd. I thought that would be just fine for me for a while, but I’m finding I don’t like putting more than about 30 yds on it. Plus, it is so gorgeous I don’t want to steam set the twist on it either. This cherry looks great with the rimu wood of our Majacraft wheels though.

I spun up another color from my Bountiful sampler. I haven’t taken it off the bobbin yet so I’m not positive on weight or yardage, but I’m guessing it to be roughly 1.25 oz and again ~30 yds probably.

I tired of the angelina (I didn’t think it was possible, but one can only take so much sparkle) and the fibers that would never likely spin really evenly. So, I picked up an inexpensive medium grade wool blend from a local shop. It is 3 oz on that bobbin and I am getting roughly 15 wpi from the singles. I’m still debating on whether I want to ply it or not. I still don’t have the rods for my lazy Kate and if I’m lucky they have been sent today, so I have time to think about it. I don’t want to navajo ply this so it will mean winding 1.5 oz off onto another bobbin.

I want to make Branching Out with it. Part of me is considering knitting it from the singles. Anyone care to share some pros or cons of my doing that?

And, to prove that I haven’t foresaken knitting in favor of spinning, here is a little WIP…

The Animals!

Despite my camera’s best efforts at thwarting me from taking pictures while at the Wool Market in Estes on Saturday, I ended up with over 50 pictures before the end of the weekend (this included a fun round of mini golf and some arcade excitement with some good friends of ours on Saturday night)…

I think my favorite was the alpaca tent where I made several friends…

Available in color or black & white.

This Suri alpaca was so cute I just wanted to leap into his pen and give him a big hug!

Also available in color or black & white.

I also enjoyed the goat tent. There were many young kids, though they tended to be too active to capture well in the somewhat low light. But, some of the adults were lazy enough in the heat to capture on film…

I couldn’t resist this guy’s charms with the fun cockeyed ears!

This is available in black and white as shown, or also color.

Who could resist these curly locks? Not me!

Also available in black & white as shown or color.

Check out these massive horns!

Available in color only.

It was such a blast! So much better than some of the other hobby related conventions I’ve been too. I can’t wait to go back again next year, and perhaps I’ll make it to some of the other animal tents next time!

Yet More Wool!

I undoubtedly bought the most fiber from Bountiful (see a snapshot of their booth in Monday’s post). There is an 8oz wool and Angelina blend in purple there, 8oz of a lambwool/angora blend from Louet in natural nearly white and an 8oz sampler of various color wool/Angelina blends. Most of these were marked down around 50% off and I got them so I’d have fiber I felt comfortable just practicing with. Though I have a feeling once I’m through the 8 oz sampler bag I’m going to be a bit tired of Angelina for a while, LOL!

~ .8 oz, 20 yds from Bountiful Grab Bag
Singles, Steam Set on Niddy Noddy

I had some issues while spinning these singles. One was that I was sitting in a rocker/glider in the basement with the wheel on carpet so I wasn’t treadling smoothly and evenly. Another was that DH was sitting right next to me doing a very poor job of pretending to read Harry Potter and instead staring *very* intently on my spinning and the last being that there was no form of distraction at all - no music or television so I was a little too intent upon the spinning process I think. But, over all, I’m pretty happy with these.

I did use our professional clothes steamer we got for Christmas to steam set the twist while it was on my niddy noddy. However, if I’m going to be using that technique much I think I’m going to want to build a PVC version as I don’t want to expose my gorgeous Cherry Wood one (pics later in the week) to that hot steam on a regular basis.

~1.2 oz, 30 yds from Bountiful Grab Bag
Singles, Wet Set (dried with a .8 oz weight)

This was much better! I moved to the back row of our stadium seating in the basement - a futon on a platform DH built and covered with left over Pergo. I also spun it when DH was not home and had the television on for a bit of distraction so I wasn’t overly intent upon my spinning and was more relaxed.

Because of the steam and the wood niddy noddy I wet set this and it did fluff considerably more than the steaming produced, but it didn’t even out my overtwist as much as the steam setting. There is also of course my lack of patience and the 24 hr dry time. Why that bothered me when I’m not up to using these singles anyway I’m not sure, LOL!

Speaking of using these singles - because they are from a grab bag there really aren’t long enough lengths of any of these fibers and I don’t care to ply the different colors together. But, I want something that properly uses these singles for posterity sake. I have a friend who is crocheting these gorgeous little bowls, but I’m thinking the singles are likely not bulky enough. But I was thinking that would make a lovely little project of my first singles. Anyone else have any suggestions?

In Fact, I Do Have Wool!

Margene asked if I have any wool, and of course she knows the answer is undoubtably yes…

She and Snow are great enablers! Okay, so after I folded to the pressure of Suzie’s lovliness I didn’t need much encouragement as I only had about 4 oz of roving to my name and I knew that wasn’t going to last me too long.

I was good and the only prepared yarn I bought was some supermerino sock yarn from Bonker’s.

I wanted some lovely sage lace weight from Grayce of Plain and Simple Wool Co. but by the time we finished our first circuit of the vendor building it was gone! Though I believe she had told Margene that she was working on a web site so I’ll try to patiently wait for it. It would make a lovely Frost Flowers, but I’d have to sell my first born to pay for enough of it and since we aren’t having kids I guess I’ll have to use it for a more modest shawl when I can get some

Traci had such fun colors in her rovings, it was hard to pick. But I took this home in addition to the yarn…

I was hoping she would have some issues of her art zine, Tub Legs with her, but of course those aren’t fibery related and she didn’t have room. So, once I’ve recovered I guess I’ll have to order them. I’ve heard amazing things about it and I know she has lots of photography and digital articles in it frequently so I’m sure I’ll enjoy it.

More in the fiber story to come tomorrow…

Excited Exhaustion!

After much…

A little animal looking (pics to come later in the week)…

We had…

That trunk contains the complete haul of Snow, Margene and myself.

This is mine…

Yep, I got the Majacraft Suzie Pro. I *love* it, though need to not spin when DH is around at the moment. He keeps make rude comments about the rustic quality of what I’m spinning. I don’t think he understands that it is not something that is going to miraculously be wonderful now that I have a wheel. He was so impressed with my knitting when I first started, but I think he conveniently forgets that I had learned as a child, so I wasn’t a *real* newbie. My hands and arms and wrists all knew the movements, they just needed reminding.

Snow and Amanda (and the people I bought the wheel from, though they could have been buttering me up to make the purchase) have commented on my quick learning of spinning. Yes, it isn’t perfect and if you want perfect you should buy commercial yarn. But, before I bought the wheel I had logged roughly only 4 hours of wheel time - 3 on Snow’s Traveller and 1 on Amanda’s Little Gem. So, I’m trying to ignore DH’s comments the best I can and not egg him on by spinning in front of him.

I’m trying to be a responsible working adult today *sigh* so I haven’t spun since yesterday afternoon and I need to sign off soon and get to more serious work. But, don’t worry, I have a lot more to report throughout the week!

Oh, if you have favorite blogs that include spinning, please let me know! I’ll need to be adding those to my bloglines!

Breathe!

Okay, I’m excited beyond belief for the wool festival. Though I’m partially scared of the crowd too, LOL!

Tonight, I get to enjoy a wonderful Italian dinner at a great locally owned restaraunt (in fact, we had our wedding reception there) with Margene, Snow, Amanda, Ashley, Linsey and three of our respective SOs! I can’t wait to meet Margene though! It’ll be my first time (aside from Snow) meeting a knit blogger!

I had hoped to have some interesting pics to show today, but there hasn’t been much in the way of knitting time aside from SnB and combine that with several diffrent snags on two different designs and I really have nothing worth photographing.

Assuming I actually get to go to Estes tomorrow I should have some pics on Monday! Though it seems there are some things conspiring against my getting to Estes, so we’ll have to see.